Drunk driver damages three cars in Mumbai

Mumbai: On Friday night, some Khar residents awoke to the sound of a car accident as 28-year-old Subroto Das rammed his car into some parked vehicles. No one was hurt but the Alto vehicle owned by resident Vipul Saluja and the Omni vehicle owned by Amit Prajapati were badly damaged along with a concrete pillar on Khar 3rd Road.

Das, a resident of Bandra's Carter road was returning home after consuming alcohol at 1.30 am, informed police officials. He lost control and rammed into some parked vehicles near the Khar Gurudwara. "He was completely drunk and was driving alone. He first banged into the parked Alto and pushed it ahead towards the Omni till it hit a concrete pillar located behind the van. All three vehicles have been badly damaged but, luckily, no one was injured," said a police official from the Khar police station.

Mr Saluja said, "The man had no regrets. He got out and abused us. His friends arrived later and tried to settle the matter, but we took him to the cops. He was bailed out after paying a fine of Rs 2,000. But what about the damage done to my vehicle?" The owners hope to be compensated for the damages. "The repairs will cost around Rs 20,000 but I used the car to transport goods, so this damage will cause me losses on a daily basis," said Mr Prajapati, owner of the Omni.

Mr Saluja, a professor, said, "After frequenting the pubs around Khar station at night, many drivers use this road to avoid the cops at night. Luckily, no one was injured during the incident." A Khar police official, on condition of anonymity said, "Das was produced in court on Saturday and booked for damaging the cars and negligent driving. The compensation will be decided in court." He has been booked under sections 279 (rash driving or riding on a public way), 427 (damage to property) and section 185 (drunk driving) of the Motor Vehicle Act.